Hi, first time poster, from Canada. Please forgive if this has been discussed before though I have searched and didn't really find the answers.

Looks like I'll be leasing a new coupe. I haven't decided between the 328 or 335 but that is for another discussion. I currently own a car worth about 14000 in trade.

As the title states, how does a trade work on a new lease? For instance:
Can some of the trade value be used for MSD?
Can some of the trade value come back to me as cash?
If the whole trade value is taken as trade and the car gets totaled, with insurance paying out the lease, have I lost the trade value (like I think what happens to your down payment without gap insurance)?

Hi, first time poster, from Canada. Please forgive if this has been discussed before though I have searched and didn't really find the answers.

Looks like I'll be leasing a new coupe. I haven't decided between the 328 or 335 but that is for another discussion. I currently own a car worth about 14000 in trade.

As the title states, how does a trade work on a new lease? For instance:
Can some of the trade value be used for MSD?
Can some of the trade value come back to me as cash?
If the whole trade value is taken as trade and the car gets totaled, with insurance paying out the lease, have I lost the trade value (like I think what happens to your down payment without gap insurance)?

Thanks

A friend of mine recently traded-in her old car as part of a lease on a new X3. She only applied about $2000 of the value of the car (I think she got $12,000) to the lease. The rest went to her. That's all I know about how to answer your questions. Seems like a great idea if the deal is right for you. It had me thinking.

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E30 1991 318is, Red on Black Leatherette

Family History: Two E21 320i, One E28 535is, One E34 535i, One E34 540i

They are two different issues. The car you own is yours. Sell it privately and get the most $ for it. Then apply as much or little as you want to the lease and pocket the rest. Went I started leasing a vehicle for my business I sold my car and put up the minimum $ for the new car, kept the rest. Yes it's great getting all that money but remember you are "locked in" to leasing until you are willing to pony up the cash for a good down payment if you decide to purchase a car in the future.

BTW, I bought a new 92 Honda prelude for 14.7K and sold it 5 years later for 8.8K before getting into a lease. Never paid one cent for repairs on that vehicle, just regular maintenance. Best deal I ever had.

Yeah, I figure once you're into leasing you're not getting out and going back to purchasing. At least not for quite a while. I like the idea of only paying for the value of the car you use, and then giving it back after 3 yrs and getting something new.

While I could get more selling my current vehicle privately there is the hassle. It depends on how big the spread is and at what point you just want to be done with the whole thing. What I'd like to do is take cash out of my old car and fill up on the msd's (hopefully it has some sort of positive tax effect, even if only a small amount). Pocket the rest and spread between investment and retirement fund. Three years from now get back my MSD and use it to pay the new msd on the new car. Will the dealer allow you to take all cash out and apply how the customer sees fit?

Funny thing is I figure that with the small mileage that I will put on the car in 3 years I suspect the residual to be less than the real value of the car. Then there will be the need for a new thread, or at least a search for an existing thread on buying at lease end to sell/profit and then lease again, etc